FESTIVAL FLAMENCO SOLIDARIOS 2007. JOSÉ
ANTONIO RODRÍGUEZ, MARINA HEREDIA, DUQUENDE, ARCÁNGEL,
ANTONIO EL PIPA...
More than art
S.C. Madrid, October 19th and 20th, 2007
Festival Flamenco Solidarios 2007.
Friday, October 19th: José Antonio Rodríguez,
Marina Heredia, Duquende, Julián Estrada/ Saturday,
October 20th. Ramón el Portugués, Arcángel,
Antonio el Pipa. Colegio Mayor San Juan Evangelista, Madrid
(Spain). 10 p.m.
José Antonio Rodríguez
(Photo Daniel Muñoz)
“Many times we’re inside
our own little bubble and we don’t realize that
there are other causes besides personal satisfaction to
make music for”
José Antonio Rodríguez
“If today flamenco acts as a vehicle
to carry out such a good action, I feel very proud to
belong to flamenco”
Arcángel
Nearly everything that had to be said
was uttered directly with cante, toque and baile. But
José Antonio Rodríguez and Arcángel
also wanted to endorse their commitment with a few words.
And they spoke for all of the artists who unselfishly
donated their art to the projects of the foundation Solidarios
para el Desarrollo (Solidarity for Development). They
did so for two days in which cante was in the foreground.
And that, despite the last-minute cancellation by one
of the stars on the bill; José Mercé.
The stage at Colegio Mayor San Juan Evangelista
offered five different vocal shows. But framed by guitar
and baile, opening and closing, respectively. The music
by José
Antonio Rodríguez was the first to sound. The
Córdoba-born guitarist condensed his personal,
expert way of understanding flamenco toque into just three
perfectly chosen pieces. Solo, he first sketched freely
upon the soleá. With Chico Gallardo on second guitar
and Agustín Díaz on percussion, he performed
a piece off his latest album ‘... en el tiempo’,
upon bulerías, without letting sweetness hinder
the precise attack. Here, his composing greatness. And
‘Manhattan de la Frontera’, a little jewel.
The crowd throbbed and offered a well-deserved ovation.
And then, cante. Marina
Heredia comes in welcomed by applause. A “tirititrán”
with arm movement. And por alegrías, combining
the warm-up with the first starts. She then opted for
soleá, a style she masters. She warmed up cautiously
and ended up growing. With ‘Balada del que nunca
fue a Granada’, she paid tribute to friendship,
to Alberti, to Lorca. Bolita’s guitar and the choruses
are joined by the violin. She, standing up, with all her
beauty. And to finish off, her tangos granadinos. Moorish,
sweet, sweeping... and in the end, heartrending.
Ramón el Portugués
(Photo Daniel Muñoz)
She thus makes way for Duquende,
cheered on by a numerous chorus of followers. A very deep
“ay” silences them. His underground cante
is spine-tingling. The enriching guitar of Chicuelo
accompanies his jondo echo. The soleá. The stone
which loses its balance. Por tangos, Camarón appears...
right here on this stage where he sang for the last time.
But Duquende tries to take off, personalizing the repertoire
of the source. And he thus goes on in the bulerías,
inspired by falsetas, playing with the rests, slowing
down, pressing. He chooses fandangos for the close. “Que
llores por mi querer”. The icing on the cake was
provided by Julián Estrada, substituting for José
Mercé. Here it’s the generosity and not the
stardom that counts.
| |
Arcángel (Photo
Daniel Muñoz)
Antonio el Pipa
(Photo Daniel Muñoz)
|
| |
|
Two cante options, but without comparisons,
on the second day of the festival. Ramón
el Portugués - who replaced El Pele in the
initial lineup - struggled. His throat isn’t in
the best of conditions, but he did his utmost to make
his contribution to the cause. Breathing oxygen into him
were his sons Paquete on guitar and Piraña on box
drum. Mineras, soleá por bulerías, tangos
and bulerías. The cave echo, his fists clenched,
his trademark melodies, the verses letting themselves
slide, his chest splitting... and good intentions. From
the veteran maestro to the young maestro.
Arcángel contributed a well-rounded
little performance to the festival. He started off with
some martinetes. Just his echo, just the shuddering. At
times, his frequency saturates the eardrum of mortals.
Lyrics which pass judgment. Miguel
Ángel Cortés comes out to give him company...
now resounding, now silent. And the thing is that at times
you can only hear the tocaor’s foot striking the
floor. The soleá por bulerías is followed
by tangos. An ‘aylerele’ and a ‘nonainoná’
define the cante. In the middle, a thousand and one vocal
wonders, plus a creative give and take between cante and
toque. And the “three daggers” which go out
with a natural ‘fade out’ effect. The creativity
is unleashed in Cortés’s guitar upon starting
the alegrías. Thus, the cante goes along paths
which amaze an audience that moreover wants Huelva. And
the cantaor responds, also making the audience feel proud
it belongs to flamenco. Antonio
el Pipa was entrusted with the grand finale. And,
as it couldn’t be any other way, he did so por bulerías
one hundred percent Jerez-style. But first he warmed up
por soleá, dressed in red, matching Tía
Juana. She came out to him in the center of the ring to
spur him on, to call him. And he answered her, facing
her, after strolling around gracefully, after visiting
the crowd. They changed from red to black for the close.
Finger snapping, clapping, calls, finishes, little kicks
of feeling. The rest was provided by the audience, who
contributed as much with its attendance as the artists
to collaborate with the charity cause of this event, now
more consolidated on the flamenco calendar.
